10.07.1943 damaged envelope of an letter mailed from 2nd Croatian Legion that was training in Riva del Garda to Split Croatia, at the time named Spalato in Italian occupied Dalmatia . Nice croatian cancel II.Hrvatska legija in purple. Italian civilian cancel Riva and censorship marks are present.
1944(?) letter from Fp.00691 Regimentsstab "Polizei Freiwilligen Regiment Kroatien" (Rgt.3) to Znaim in the Großdeutschland Reich today Znojmo a town in the South Moravia, Czech Republic. There in no clear date on the envelope but SS Feldpost is written on it thus the letter was surely sent from "Polizei Freiwilligen Regiment Kroatien" , it was part of SS German-Croatian police that marked its mail as SS Feldpost.
Regimentsstab Polizei-Regiment Kroatien used Fp.32555 from 1943 , I think but I can't prove it that Fp.00691 was used by Polizei Freiwilligen Regiment 3. (Kroatien)
Small collection of 4 letters mailed from GbAR 13 Haubitz division/abteilung (croatian: 13.gorsko-topnička pukovnija ,english: 13 mountain artillerie regiment) to Croatia.
Letters mailed :
10.09.1916 Fp.85 - 7.Gebirgsbrigade to Šemovci near Virje
29.01.1917 Fp.382(Fp.85) - 22.Gebirgsbrigade(7.Gebirgsbrigade) to Požega
02.02.1917 Fp.636 - 7.Gebirgsbrigade to Požega
06.01.1918 Fp.473 - Quartiermeister.abteilung 6.Armee to Zagreb
Mail from GbAR 13 is scarce , very interesting are letters from 1917 mailed just a few days apart but units Fp. number changed. Units often changed its Fp.numbers making it hard to make exact lists of Fp. Numbers that each K.u.K unit used. At the end of the war GbAR 13 returned to Ogulin where it was disbanded.
09.02.1943 card mailed from German unit via German feldpost to a Domobran in Zagreb, text in Croatian, censored by OKW censorship. Unfortunately german units Fp. number in cancel is unreadable, but as croatian card was used sender was most probably in Croatia. Such usage of Croatian civilian cards in German Feldpost is very very rare.
Ships fate is very interesting. SMB 81-T was given to Romania after WW1 and renamed SBORUL. It served with Romanians until it was captured by Soviets in 1944 and then used by the Soviet navy against Romanians under name MUSSON. Ship was returned to Romania on 22 September 1945 and continued to serve under name SBORUL until 1958 when she was scrapped.
29.09.1943 Feldpost card from Erg.und.ers Abteilung der Kroatische Flaklegion in Wiener-Neustadt to Fp59706(Feldkommandatur 1019, Macerata, Italy). Beautiful unit cancel. Text in German language probably from an instructor in the Flaklegion to his brother. All mail from flak legion is extremly rare.
One reader of this blog mr.Branimir Pešut left a note on my first post about Croatian flak legion. English translation follows below Croatian text:
" Školovanje dijela vojnika za Hrvatsku FLAK legiju bilo je u Wiener Neustadtu. Tamo je bio moj otac 1943....Poslije su ih poslali u Oldenburg, Kirchellen... zarobljen kod Hamburga od strane 8. britanske armije 1945."
"Some soldiers of the Croatian FLAK legion were trained in Wiener Neustadt. My father was there in 1943... Later they were sent to Oldenburg, Kirchellen... he was captured near Hamburg by members of 8th.British Army in 1945."
THIS FELDPOST CARD ONLY CONFIRMS WHAT MR.PEŠUT WROTE.
20.12.1915 Feldpost card from SMS Arpad to Zagreb , text in Croatian.
Arpad was Habsburg class battleship with crew of 630 men. It took part in bombardment of Ancona on 23.05.1915 after Italy entered war and later in 1917 took short part in bombardment on Italian battlefield, but most of the war was stationed in Pula(Pola) naval base. MFP Pola cancel and Arpad Dienststemple.
9.1944 registered official feldpost letter from Fp.16296A, Stab Pionier-Bataillon 392 (Kroat.) Inf.division to BERLIN. Kenn number 771 in Feldpost cancel and on R-sticker.
Registered mail from 392. Croatian Infantry division is very rare.
2 letters from 1943 sent from Italian "Regia Accademia di Artiglieria e Genio"( Royal Academy of Artillery and Engineers) from Lucca to Zagreb Croatia .
Croatian soldiers/officers were trained in Italy as well as Germany , an unknown number of officers was training with "Regia Accademia di Artiglieria e Genio" in Torino In November of 1942 due to intensive aerial bombardment , Accademia was moved from Torino to Lucca. This Croatian soldier Zvonko Barić writes to fellow soldier Ivo Košutić.
1st.letter is from 3.1943 (two lower pics) mailed to Zastavnik(Fähnrich) Ivo Košutić in Zagreb, Academy cancel and Italian censor cancel at the back of envelope.
2nd. is from 5.1943 (two upper pics) mailed to Zastavnik(Fähnrich) Ivo Košutić a member of 3.bojna 2.Gorskog zdruga (3.battalion, 2nd Mountain brigade) in Zagreb, letter was redirected to Jablanica, last post office Konjic in Herzegovina. Academy cancel and Italian censor cancels are at the back of envelope,as well as Zagreb arrival cancel.
Mail from Italian military academies to Croatia is very very rare.
I have seen another cover mailed to Ivo Košutić by same sender, there his name is written Ivan Košutić. It is possible that this is Ivan Košutić(1921-1998) author of books about Croatian Domobranstvo in NDH, he served in Domobranstvo as well. Interesting thing about covers is that on the back of envelopes are written details from senders Croatian passport. He is from Đakovčka Satnica , a village near Đakovo , Ivan Košutić was from Punitovci a village near Đakovo maybe 2-3 km away from Đakovačka Satnica.. this could easily be letter mailed to him from a local friend...
